Santa Cruz Municipal Worker Racks Up 100 Vacation Days

An employee at the Santa Cruz mayor’s office accumulated 100 vacation days, which forced the municipality to hire extra staff while she takes her time off.

This year, the first budget amendment mayor María Rosa López presented the municipal council included ¢3 million to pay for the services of temporary workers hired to cover for those on vacation.

“It’s for the woman who is filling in for doña Isabel, who accumulated 100 vacation days and is now taking them month to month,” López told council members.

“For each replacement worker we have to pay a bonus, vacation and those types of things,” the mayor added.

The money spent on salaries is a common concern in the municipality’s accounting department, as more than 50 percent of the municipality’s total finances have been spent on payroll in recent years. In 2006, salaries accounted for less than 20 percent.